


hold me while you wait

by glimbows



Category: Open Heart (Visual Novels)
Genre: F/F, F/M, Friends With Benefits, Hurt/Comfort, Mentions of Cancer, kyra wanting them to be happy...... them working to save her..... it's unmatched, no beta. sry, they have the cutest scenes together. all so supportive of one another, this is bryce and mc endgame tho, we stan a healthy love triangle with no Jealousy / Competing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-28
Updated: 2021-02-28
Packaged: 2021-03-12 20:21:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,957
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29765067
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/glimbows/pseuds/glimbows
Summary: She learned a long time ago that the world isn't fair. It was silly to expect that love would be any different.or,In the hours following Bryce's presentation of his experimental surgery to save Kyra's life, Wynter reckons with her feelings for them both.
Relationships: Bryce Lahela/Main Character (Open Heart), Kyra Santana/Main Character (Open Heart)
Comments: 2
Kudos: 4





	hold me while you wait

**Author's Note:**

> a continuation of open heart book 2, chapter 9.

She learned a long time ago that the world isn’t fair. 

If it was, she and Kyra would’ve been together for years by now. She’d steal Wynter away at lunch for a run to the ice cream shop down the road from Edenbrook. They’d talk about going sky-diving and bungee-jumping and have it be more than dreaming. People would know how much they loved each other because they’d never stop kissing in doorways and lingering after see-you-later hugs. 

It’s always see-you-later with Kyra. Wynter refuses to say anything different. 

But if the world was fair, Kyra wouldn’t be laying in the hospital bed, frail and afraid. She wouldn’t need Bryce’s dangerous surgery to give her the slightest chance at living that full life she deserved. She wouldn’t have cancer at all.

It’s just her luck that she had to trip over her own two feet for a patient. A patient who constantly seemed to be knocking at death’s door.

Wynter isn’t a bad doctor. She did an emergency thoracotomy on a patient in the first ten minutes of her very first day, she worked like hell to earn her spot on Ethan’s diagnostics team, and she wouldn’t have fallen for just any patient who decided to make their time at Edenbrook more bearable by flirting with their caregiver. But she  _ is _ a human being underneath those scrubs. She fell for Kyra winking from her hospital bed in the same way she would’ve fallen for her winking from across a bar: without warning, as if she’d been shoved from behind. 

That’s what finding Kyra on the floor of the accounting office felt like too. Knowing it’s a million times worse for her makes Wynter’s gut churn.

She flips through Kyra’s chart absentmindedly. The hospital is quiet this time of night, save for the beeping of monitors and the hushed chatter of residents in the halls. The patients are supposed to be sleeping if they can.

“Quadruple-checking my chart isn’t going to do any good, doc. I’m pretty sure it’s gonna stay cancer.” 

Kyra’s appearance resembles her voice; small and frail. Her jokes don’t land the same like that. Wynter hugs the chart close to her chest and fidgets in her seat. 

“Quadruple-checking doesn’t hurt when you’re a doctor.” 

“It does when you’ve got other places to be. You can’t convince me you don’t have a dozen hot dates you’re blowing off just to sit here with me.” 

Wynter smiles. “If you want me to leave, Kyra, just tell me to leave.” 

“You mean it’s that easy? Go! Scram! Get out of here!” a cough briefly wracks her, but she lapses back into a laugh. “You should’ve followed Dr. Washboard Abs out of here when you had the chance. I’m sure he can show you cheaper thrills than my charts.” 

“If I didn’t know any better, I’d think you were insinuating something…” 

“Sorry, was my comment about you two being absolutely  _ clueless _ earlier too hard to comprehend?” 

Wynter cagily glances up through her lashes. There’s a grin on Kyra’s face that lights up the otherwise dim room in a way that’s therapeutic to see again. Still, she’s not sure how much anyone actually knows about her and Bryce. 

Hell, she’s not sure how much she and Bryce know. The friends with benefits thing started off fuzzy as-is and has only gotten more complicated from there. Though it’s implied by the obvious, forbidden pining she went through regarding Kyra her first intern year, Wynter’s never had the heart to admit that Bryce was initially like, 57% a rebound to help her get her emotions in check. It was only acceptable because neither of them had ever set any rules, any labels— not until Keiki had shown up. And even then, the only rule was no fucking in the apartment. 

“I knew it. You’re totally sweet on each other.” Kyra grins when she only gets silence as a response. 

“Why don’t I let you get some sleep, huh?” 

“No, no, now is not the time to get cheeky! Not with me, at least,” 

Wynter shakes her head and falls back into her chair beside the bed. She can’t bring herself to leave her, knowing that their time is short, even if it means she’ll be teased relentlessly in the process. If it brings a smile to Kyra’s face, it’s worth it. 

“We’ve been… some kind of thing for a few months now.” 

“Duh.” Kyra weakly scoffs. “I still have eyes, Wynter. Anyone can see that there’s something going on between you. I want the  _ juicy _ details.” 

She raises her brows, almost sheepish, which is only in-character for Wynter when she’s around her. “I kissed him the night before our first day of second-year residency.” 

Kyra stares, waiting for more.

“I kissed him in the Charles on the way home from Donahue’s.” 

The other woman’s eyes light up with a look that can only be described as  _ jackpot _ . “The Charles  _ River? _ You two went skinny-dipping the night before your first day back? That’s my girl!” 

“Well,” Wynter folds her hands matter-of-factly. “We had our underwear on.” 

“Uh, not for long, I presume.” 

“Maybe we went to his apartment so we weren’t arrested for public nudity. It was still a hard one to explain to my roommates when I got back damp, though.” She still remembers poor Sienna opening the living room blinds to check if it had been raining outside. Kyra stays grinning at her, looking as revitalized as she can in her state. “You seem… very happy about this.”

“Of course I am! I finally get to live vicariously through you. That wasn’t easy to do when you were moping all around me last year.” she throws Wynter a wink. “Plus, don’t tell anyone, but you’re my two favorite doctors in this place. Also, the nicest. And the hottest.” 

Wynter doesn’t realize her jaw has gone slack until it looks like Kyra is about to make a comment about her catching flies. Still, she’s hung up on something else she’d said. 

“Moping around you?” 

Kyra weakly opens her hand. Wynter immediately moves to twine their fingers together. “You’re kinda bad at hiding things from me, doc. It’s one of the many endearing things about you.” 

“Our relationship is pretty complicated, huh?” 

“Not when you take out the cancer, the fact that half the people in this building are hopelessly into you, and the doctor-slash-patient lawsuit waiting to happen.” 

The doctor can’t help but laugh. “Oh, is that all?” 

“I guess you could throw Bryce in there, too, but,” Kyra gives her hand a weak squeeze. “If you really think about it, all that matters at the end of the day is that I know you have my back. You care about me, and I care about you double. Quadruple, even.” 

Wynter hangs her head, auburn curls obscuring most of her face as she stares at their hands clasped together. It’s the same hand of Kyra’s that Bryce was holding earlier. Bryce, who knew just how important Kyra was to Wynter and probably stayed up half the night putting together a surgical plan to save her. And Kyra herself, who was spending what may be one of her last nights alive championing for Wynter’s happiness. Despite how unfair it all is, she can’t believe how lucky she is to have them both, how lucky she is that they care about each other just as much as she cares about them. 

Kyra has always been more than just a patient. Wynter’s sure that, no matter what happens in the coming week, she’ll love her for the rest of her life. Bryce, on the other hand, has become much more than just a rebound. He  _ always _ has been. 

They’re her friends. Her confidants. Two of the people she cares about most in the world, that she’s absolutely terrified of losing. 

“You’re going to be okay, Kyra.” 

“Don’t make promises you can’t keep, babe,” she says slightly less jovially than before. Wynter squeezes her hand tighter. 

“I mean it. If anyone can get you through this, it’s Bryce, but… you’re just as strong as you were before. Even if it doesn’t feel like it right now, I know you have it in you to beat this.” 

Kyra coughs, prompting Wynter to lean forward and help her through it. The longer it goes on, the tighter her throat gets. Once it’s over, the spirit Kyra had mustered up before has disappeared, and she pekidly leans back against her pillow. 

“You’re right,” she croaks. “I don’t feel very strong right now.” 

Wynter loosens her grip on her hand, gently stroking the back of her hand with her thumb. If she concentrates on the contact between their skin, maybe she won’t feel so helpless. Maybe she’ll feel like she’s doing something worthwhile instead of just trudging towards what seems so inevitable. 

A 10% chance at survival is still a chance. It’s risk and reward, just like it was with Mrs. Martinez. She regrets nothing about that case. 

No matter the impact it’ll have on her own quality of life, Wynter has to do what’s best for her patient. For someone who’s far beyond being her friend. 

“Maybe you’re not physically strong, but you are literally the… most spirited person I’ve ever met, Kyra. You’re indomitable.” And even if she doesn’t make it, it’s beyond clear her spirit will linger in the air, through the halls of Edenbrook and beyond, forever. 

Weakly, the other woman smiles. Her eyes are heavy, her breathing ragged, and Wynter swallows back a lump in her throat. 

“You’ve got a hell of a lot of faith in little ol’ me.” 

“I love you,” Wynter says. “So many people love you.” 

“I love you double.” 

“I love you  _ quadruple _ .” 

Wynter has to laugh or else she’ll cry. Kyra shares the sentiment, offering her hand a weaker squeeze than before. The beeps on the monitor remind them both that time is passing. Soon, she’ll be on an operating table, but for now, it’s just them. 

A silence longer than all the rest passes. Kyra’s eyelids flutter. 

“Wynter?” 

“Yeah?” 

“Can you sit with me until I fall asleep?” 

Wynter waits for a joke. An  _ “I want your face to be the last thing I see before I sleep forever.” _ Something, anything along those lines. It never comes, and she’s met with a look of pleading she’s not sure she’s ever seen from Kyra. 

“Of course.” 

“This is the only time I’m ever going to ask for this,” Kyra clarifies, sinking further into her pillow. “The last thing I want— the last thing I’ve ever wanted— is for you to postpone your life for me.” 

“Kyra,” Wynter hopes she can’t hear how thick her voice is. 

“I mean it, Wynter. You’re always telling me to take this seriously, so this is me being serious.” she fights to keep her eyes open as she takes in the doctor’s quiet shock. “I don’t want you to spend all your time thinking about what things could’ve been like if things were different. If you do that, you waste the time you have, and you can’t afford to do that. You have to live in the moment.” 

“Kyra, stop talking like you’re going to d—” 

“I could, Wynter.” It hangs in the air between them. “And I don’t want to die knowing you’ve stopped living for me. I want you to do the opposite. I want you to  _ start  _ living for me. I want you to flirt with everything that has a pulse, to finally work up the courage to go sky-diving, to try that gross bacon ice cream at the shop down the street. To just… do everything you can.” 

The doctor sighs and presses her forehead to their joined hands. “I’m going to do everything I can.” 

“For both of us. Please, do everything you can for me, but for yourself too.” 

Wynter nods against her knuckle, doing everything she can to breathe normally in the meantime. 

“I want you to be happy.” Kyra murmurs, quieter this time as she begins to succumb to her fatigue. 

“I am happy,” Wynter assures her. She looks up and shakes her hair out of her face to watch the other woman close her eyes. “You’ve made me so happy.” 

A smile ghosts across Kyra’s lips. She nods, her gentle grip on Wynter’s hand giving in only slightly as sleep overcomes her. As frail as she looks, there’s a peace on her face that tamps down the lump in Wynter’s throat enough so that she doesn’t bubble over with tears. 

She stays like that for another ten minutes just to make sure Kyra doesn’t need her. An attending tasked with monitoring her for the evening eventually pokes her head in and calls for Wynter to go home. She refrains from looking over the chart at the foot of the bed a final time as she gathers her things. Before she leaves, she gently places Kyra’s hand beside her in bed. 

The hospital is quiet. The locker room is quiet. The bus stop is quiet, and Wynter can’t stand to go home to a quiet apartment, her roommates no doubt asleep as they prepare for their early morning shifts. 

She gets off on a stop that isn’t hers. 

* * *

Her hand hovers precariously before Bryce’s front door. The ride from the ground floor up the elevator had been a blur of trying not to break down in a private space, and Wynter wonders now if coming by unannounced was the right thing to do. 

It was never a question of should she before, but the late-night hour and the realizations Kyra had forced her to accept leave her teetering back and forth on her tiptoes outside for a good five minutes. She’s going to feel like such a jerk if she wakes Keiki.

Wynter swallows her pride and raps her knuckles on the door, bracing herself for whatever comes next. 

A light flicks on under the crack in the door. She grips the strap of her purse a bit tighter as whoever’s about to greet her looks out the peephole. A bleary-eyed Bryce opens the door, still in his dayclothes. 

“Wynter? Is everything okay?” 

“Sorry,” she swallows. “I know it’s late, I just got out of the hospital.” 

“Didn’t your shift end…” he looks around for a clock before realizing there isn’t one within his field of vision. “Hours ago? Was there an emergency or something?” 

“No. I was just sitting with Kyra.” 

His face softens as he becomes a bit more alert. Quietly, Bryce wraps an arm around her and ushers her past the threshold. There are textbooks covering half of his coffee table and a blanket haphazardly strewn across the couch. 

“I kinda crashed doing some work for her procedure.” he yawns as he makes his way behind the kitchen island. “You need anything?” 

“A glass of water, maybe?” 

Bryce diligently grabs a glass and moves to the refrigerator filter. Wynter takes it upon herself to collapse onto his makeshift bed, rubbing her eyes. 

“How is she?” 

“She was trying to keep her chin up for me, same as always.” 

“She’s a character, that one,” Bryce says good-naturedly. He joins her on the couch, handing her a glass. “Did Dr. Woods finally kick you out?” 

Wynter blushes, looking down as she swirls her water around. “Pretty much. Kyra asked for me to wait until she was asleep to leave, though. I was trying to get my stuff together when she came in.” 

They both sip at their drinks, a feeling of exhaustion in the atmosphere. She feels like she’s in the eye of a hurricane, temporarily safe within the four walls of Bryce’s apartment. More of his things have been brought out from his bedroom. Wynter guesses Keiki is either asleep or knows better than to walk out when they’re alone together. 

“Did you bring a change of scrubs?” she eyes him, the pitiful look on her face saying it all. Bryce yawns again, this time through a smile. “Don’t worry about it. I planned to get up early anyway, I’ll just throw them in the wash for you.” 

“You’re a lifesaver.” 

“Literally.” he sets his emptied glass down on the coffee table. “And as a licensed lifesaver, it’s only fair that I tell you it’s time to get some rest. You’ve got a date with Senator Farrugia and his mystery illness tomorrow.” 

Wynter sighs deeply, hands twisting around her glass as she focuses on a spot on the coffee table. “I don’t know how I’m going to be able to focus on that case with Kyra in trouble.” 

“Hey,” Bryce removes her water from her hands and sets it down. “What have I said a million times about you doubting yourself?” 

“I cried in a supply closet today, Bryce. I haven’t done that in a year.” 

“So? That doesn’t mean you’re not the toughest doctor in the place. You literally stole Mass Kenmore’s highest-profile patient out right from under their noses. And that was _ after _ watching Kyra get her scan.” 

She can’t help but grimace as she thinks about June, her plan, and her relationship with Tobias, and then she grimaces even further when she realizes what they’re doing is sort of similar to what she and Bryce are doing. Except she and Bryce actually  _ care _ about each other. 

“I’m not sure that’s something to be proud of. You should have seen the look Aurora gave me when she spotted me.” 

“Mass Kenmore would’ve done the same thing, Wynter. They basically already did.” he sighs, running his hand through his hair. “You need to go easy on yourself. Seriously.” 

Wynter sighs, trying her best to believe him. His voice is as earnest as always, even with a layer of fatigue to it. Her own tiredness weighs her body down, and she ends up leaning into Bryce, her head notching perfectly into the dip of his collar. He wastes no time wrapping an arm around her. 

It doesn’t feel different than it did before, back when she was trying too hard not to focus on the ins and outs of their relationship. They always fall back into each other eventually. The benefits of being Bryce’s friend go miles beyond sex. By the feeling in the air, like the moon breaking through a skyful of clouds, she guesses he feels it too. 

“You’ve got a hell of a lot of faith in me,” Wynter says. 

“Because I know you can do this. You can do anything you put that mind of yours to.” 

Bryce kisses her forehead and the floodgates open. 

She’s not a violent crier, but she does grip at his collar for dear life, sobs wracking her exhausted body as she drenches his shoulder. His arms hold her steady, one of his hands rubbing comforting circles on her back. Bryce doesn’t rush her through it, taking a page out of her “how to comfort Keiki” book instead and allowing her to feel it all. It’s not the first time they’ve been in this position. From the on-call room to his couch-turned-bed, no one can stitch her up quite like him. 

Still, he _ does _ feel it too. How different and how similar this is all at once. 

Now’s not the time for that conversation, though. As confident as he is, the reality that Kyra’s life is quite literally in his hands is unavoidable. Bryce does what he can with them in the moment, curling a strand of Wynter’s auburn hair around his finger as she weeps. 

“Thank you for letting me stay,” she mumbles. He wraps his arm tighter around her, wanting to make her feel even more at home. 

“I should be thanking you for everything you’ve done for me over the past few weeks.” 

She looks up, eyes red and puffy, a sad smile on her face. “You mean things with Keiki are still getting better?” 

“Every day.” Bryce smiles. “She’s gonna be thrilled when she finds out you’re here in the morning. I get texts on break most days asking me to go and say hey to Wynter.”

“And how come I’ve never gotten one of those heys?”

“I’m a busy man. But just know, you’re officially a celebrity around here.” 

Her smile splits a little wider across her face, head shaking as she uses her sleeve to wipe tears off her cheeks. They keep coming, inevitably, but the sobs subside. She’s too tired to wrack her body any further and too tired to move from Bryce’s embrace. Slowly, he holds her tight to his chest and maneuvers them backward. His head eventually finds one of the couch pillows as Wynter takes a minute to throw the blanket half-over them both. 

“This is comfier than I thought it would be.” 

“Well, you’re laying on me, not the couch.” 

Relief floods his chest when he hears her stifle a giggle. He reaches back to switch off the desk lamp, rendering the room dark aside from the moonlight pouring in through the window. Wynter uses the rise and fall of his chest to keep track of time, slowly losing herself in his heartbeat. 

“I’m scared, Bryce.” she doesn’t sound hopeless. Just tired. 

He thinks for a moment. “Me too.” 

“Really?” 

“A bit. But I’ll be damned if I’m gonna let fear stop me.” 

Wynter peers up at him, his handsome features bathed in moonlight as if she’s seeing him for the first time. 

“You two are a lot alike.” 

Bryce blinks. “Huh?” 

“You and Kyra.” 

“Well, I guess we both know a gorgeous doctor when we see one,” 

“That’s not what I meant,” she says, a hand lightly hitting his chest before she snuggles in deeper. He can still feel the wetness of her tears on his front. “Though that does raise another excellent point— you’re both confident enough to flirt with anyone and everyone.” 

“Don’t forget unfairly good-looking,” Bryce adds.

“Fine. Confident, unfairly good-looking, super smart, and… brave.” 

“Wow, I was expecting you to throw pain in the ass in there.” 

“No,” she smushes her cheek against his chest. “Kyra’s not a pain in the ass.” 

He scoffs through his smile, head tilted towards the window as he hides his blush. “Well, Kyra’s pretty amazing. It’s an honor to be in the same ballpark as her.” 

Wynter nods. A silence lingers for a moment. Even though it’s comfortable, Bryce can’t help but feel like he’s waiting for something. Like she’s about to drop a bombshell on him. He sees her wipe her eyes one more time before wrapping her arm around his waist. 

“I know she’s in good hands.” she sighs. “I love you guys. I could’ve never gotten through this past year without you both.”

“I have faith that there’s a lot more of that to come, Wynter.” his eyes fall on the many discarded textbooks beside them. “For now, though, you gotta get some shut-eye.” 

“I know.” 

Before he can reply, she shifts atop him and leans up to plant a kiss to his cheek. Bryce turns to meet her, giving her the option to move into him if she wants to. Wynter sniffles and then gives in, meeting his lips for a moment. It’s over way too soon, but she’s sure her arms will snap in half if she keeps herself propped up for another minute. 

“Goodnight, Bryce.” 

“Night,” 

He’s going to have to be up in four hours if he wants to have her scrubs in and out of the laundry in time for work. Still, Bryce finds himself waiting to get fully comfortable against his pillow until he’s sure she’s asleep, just in case she needs him. 

**Author's Note:**

> this one goes out to all the people who thought kyra was a li, became infatuated with her, and then fell in love with bryce and had to make all of that into one coherent plot 🥰
> 
> chapters 8, 9, 10, and 11 of open heart 2 is probably one of my favorite choices arcs ever. and the bond these three have throughout the books has always fascinated me!
> 
> ty for reading! find me on tumblr @livesbeneath


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